President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has announced plans to propose legal amendments to introduce a formal home schooling pathway for children with disabilities, as part of broader reforms to strengthen inclusive education.
Delivering his Presidential Statement, President Muizzu outlined ongoing and planned initiatives aimed at improving access to education for children with disabilities. He said the proposed amendments would allow home schooling based on assessments of a child’s level of disability or mental condition, in line with established regulations.
The President said special classrooms, accessible toilets, and tailored educational support facilities will be provided to ensure privacy and dignity for students with disabilities. He also assured that schools currently lacking essential learning equipment, devices, and resources will be fully equipped this year.
Additional measures include the development of specialised textbooks for children with disabilities and targeted programmes to prepare them for O-Level examinations in ways suited to their individual needs. President Muizzu also announced that, starting next month, parents of children with disabilities working in the civil service will be allowed to switch to work-from-home arrangements.
“My policy is to establish justice in education. Every child is equal for me, and no child should be deprived of their rights because of a disability,” the President said, adding that a dedicated project to advance inclusive education will be launched this year.
He further said teacher training programmes focused on educating children with disabilities will be expanded. The President also announced plans to establish a digitalised education management system this year to support real-time, data-driven decision-making, alongside continued work to strengthen digital infrastructure and resources in schools nationwide.
On infrastructure development, the President said that by last year, 142 classrooms, nine multipurpose halls, and 56 education support facilities such as science laboratories, staff rooms, and libraries had been completed. For the current academic year, a further 16 classrooms, seven multipurpose halls, and 250 education support facilities have been completed. Construction is currently underway on 955 classrooms, 78 multipurpose halls, and 2,923 education support facilities across the country.